D&D 5E (+) Ideas For Martial Features

[doctorbadwolf]

So let’s talk specific ideas, without all the rhetoric and snarking that other threads become full of.

Here are some things I find underwhelming, missing, or too siloed into other features.

• Throwing creatures
• Defensive reactions
• Shield work
• Setting up a precise strike with a feint or parry
• Disarms
• Hold the line moves - that is, ability to slow or stop multiple enemies trying to get past you
• Marking
• Using skills to ignore difficult terrain or stop OAs
• Knock heads together or otherwise hit a guy with another guy

What are your ideas for these? Do you think the ones that are in the DMG work well as written? Am I missing any basic moves that martial characters should be able to do?

And then, what are some higher level moves that martials should have access to?

• Disappearing without needing concealment (gated by level and expertise)
• The stuff above, but bigger and better (yeet stuff bigger than you, etc)
• Break spells, like punching a wall of force in just the right place and forcing the caster to save vs losing the spell
• Interrupt enemy casting
• Become magic resistant?
• Use ritual, hit dice, and rare ingredients to craft a weapon that is bound to you, is magical, and gains power as you do. You aren’t doing magic, you’re crafting with magic ingredients, and your own life’s blood/life force

I know a lot more good ideas have been posited before, but I’m blanking.

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

Like I said in that other thread, I'd give them the Artificer's magical weapons and armors crafting (but not wondrous items or potions and whatnot) , making the new ''masteries'' into possible modification to your weapons.

As for rogues, I'd take the Expert's features and give them this features:
''Lucky Number.
When you or a creature you can see within 60 feet of you makes an attack roll, an ability check, or a saving throw, you can use your reaction to ignore the die roll and decide whether the number rolled is the minimum needed to succeed or one less than that number (your choice).

When you use this feature, you gain one level of exhaustion.''

Now the Fighter's power comes from their mastery of magical equipment, the Rogue's comes from supernatural luck.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Wait if fighters should be able to break spells with special attacks, why not be able to treat weapon attacks as magical for bypassing immunities and resistances?

I think that being able to make a Master Work that is magical even though you have no magic of your own is a good idea, but…yeah like a good level 5ish feature might be “your attacks count as magical”.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Like I said in that other thread, I'd give them the Artificer's magical weapons and armors crafting (but not wondrous items or potions and whatnot) , making the new ''masteries'' into possible modification to your weapons.

As for rogues, I'd take the Expert's features and give them this features:
''Lucky Number.
When you or a creature you can see within 60 feet of you makes an attack roll, an ability check, or a saving throw, you can use your reaction to ignore the die roll and decide whether the number rolled is the minimum needed to succeed or one less than that number (your choice).

When you use this feature, you gain one level of exhaustion.''

Now the Fighter's power comes from their mastery of magical equipment, the Rogue's comes from supernatural luck.

I get the idea behind the rogue one, but that seems…bad. Like, gaining exhaustion is a big consequence.

I’d rather give every skill and tool a mastery trait you can only use if you have expertise, and give the rogue even more expertise.

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

I get the idea behind the rogue one, but that seems…bad. Like, gaining exhaustion is a big consequence.

Its a feature from EGtW given to the Chronurgy wizard. I think it would work IF you go with the new Exhaustion rules.

If not, I agree, given that the first level of Exhaustion gives you disadvantage on skill checks, which is killer for Rogues!

It could be the good ol' PB per rest.

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

Wait if fighters should be able to break spells with special attacks, why not be able to treat weapon attacks as magical for bypassing immunities and resistances?

I think that being able to make a Master Work that is magical even though you have no magic of your own is a good idea, but…yeah like a good level 5ish feature might be “your attacks count as magical”.

Maybe a features like the monk's deflect missile?

When targeted by a spell that targets only you and the spell misses you or you make your save, you can use you reaction to fling the spell back to another creature within the original spell's range. Make a weapon attack roll against the AC of the new target. On hit, the target suffers the full effect of the original spell.

 

[Zaukrie]

I'd love for shields to be more valuable. Maybe it is just the people I play with, but almost everyone uses two weapons.....

Shield bash, slow others with your shield, protection ("lend" your shield bonus to an adjacent ally), I'll have to keep thinking.

In general, I agree with you that martials need more cool things to do (again, maybe it's the people I play with).

 

[Cap'n Kobold]

Inflicting most conditions. Blinded, deafened, etc.

Extended and improvised usage of skills and tools.

Breaking, or cleaving through some obstacles, with capability increasing with level, from wooden doors, right up to stone and force effects at tier 4.

Improved capability in any conflict (not necessarily combat) situations. Possibly better with any opposed roll.
Able to predict the first action or two of a creature in a combat situation, and some other stressful situations.

At the top end:
Just plain can't be surprised. Advantage on any checks. Disadvantage to hit them.

Are we talking abut stuff that every martial can do, or just abilities that martials might be able to choose.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Inflicting most conditions. Blinded, deafened, etc.

Extended and improvised usage of skills and tools.

Breaking, or cleaving through some obstacles, with capability increasing with level, from wooden doors, right up to stone and force effects at tier 4.

Improved capability in any conflict (not necessarily combat) situations. Possibly better with any opposed roll.
Able to predict the first action or two of a creature in a combat situation, and some other stressful situations.

At the top end:
Just plain can't be surprised. Advantage on any checks. Disadvantage to hit them.

Are we talking abut stuff that every martial can do, or just abilities that martials might be able to choose.

I’m definitely thinking a mix of class specific, any martial can choose, anyone can do but only martials will be good at, and stuff just gated by proficiencies and mastery/expertise.

At worst, some of that might also benefit the half-casters, which I’m fine with.

Its a feature from EGtW given to the Chronurgy wizard. I think it would work IF you go with the new Exhaustion rules.

If not, I agree, given that the first level of Exhaustion gives you disadvantage on skill checks, which is killer for Rogues!

It could be the good ol' PB per rest.

Oh with the less terrible exhaustion sure. Absolutely. I do think that what should tie the rogue and fighter together is mastery, though. Just mastery of different things.

Maybe a features like the monk's deflect missile?

When targeted by a spell that targets only you and the spell misses you or you make your save, you can use you reaction to fling the spell back to another creature within the original spell's range. Make a weapon attack roll against the AC of the new target. On hit, the target suffers the full effect of the original spell.

I like that, and in fact my monk-remake and kinda-swordmage both have a similar feature.

What I’d suggest is to make the deflect and redirect work against weapon attacks early on, then the deflect works on magic, then the redirect works on magic, spread out over the first 10 levels.

I'd love for shields to be more valuable. Maybe it is just the people I play with, but almost everyone uses two weapons.....

Shield bash, slow others with your shield, protection ("lend" your shield bonus to an adjacent ally), I'll have to keep thinking.

In general, I agree with you that martials need more cool things to do (again, maybe it's the people I play with).

Yeah shields should definitely be a bigger deal. Like, fold the feat into “this is what shields do”.

 

[Baron Opal II]

Inflicting most conditions. Blinded, deafened, etc.

I concur.

Breaking, or cleaving through some obstacles, with capability increasing with level, from wooden doors, right up to stone and force effects at tier 4.

Here too, but force effects would, for me, definitely be Tier 4.

Are we talking abut stuff that every martial can do, or just abilities that martials might be able to choose.

A bit of both, I would think. I would want to expand the Fighting Maneuver list as well as having abilities that you choose as you go up in level. If there are, say, 10 abilities that can be chosen over 20 levels you can build guilds that feature 3-5 particular maneuvers. Perhaps this would imply capstone abilities at levels 12 and 20.

Disabling foe's abilities as well; disabling flight so a creature has to land for a round, a whirlwind attack that hits everyone of a rolled AC that's next to you, blinding a basilisk for a round so that others don't have disadvantage on attack, &c.